Beverage dispensing device



()ct 14, 1952 c. F. JARBEAU BEVERAGE DISPENSING DEVIC Filed May 8, 1950FIG.7 FIG.8 FIG.9 FIG.|O

' FIVG.3 FIGQ4 //VVENTOE CHARLES f M l/P191540 29 \MM aiwm Patented Get.14, 1952 UNITED STATES TENT FFICE;

2,613,988 BEVERAGE DISPENSING DEVICE Charles F. J arbeau, Dayton, Ohio,assignor of onehalf to Franklin E. Shankle, Mad'River Town Ship, OhioApplication May 8, 1950, Serial No. 1604329 2 Claims.

part of a beverage receptacle is not new but they main objection tosippers of this type. is that when the cap is removed and the sipperpops upwardly out of the bottle, the-lower contents of the bottle cannotbe reached by'the sipper because the latter obviously must-be of shorterlength than the height-of the bottle in order to be contained within thebottle. Various ways have been proposed to overcome this diificulty andin one instance a telescoping extension is provided at the upper end ofthe straw or sipper which is adapted to be pulled out to an extendedposition for holding the shank or the main portion of the straw in onehand and the extension tube in the other hand. This manipulation of thestraw represents an, unsanitary condition since it requires the graspingof; the straw by the hand and that-portionofthe straw which may be sograsped might be a portion which later is immersed in the beverage andcontamination mayresult.

It has been found that in'thosestrawsin which the telescoping tip isprovided and which tip is extended by the hand in the-manner described,the straw as a whole pops'upwardly out-of the beverage and in order to're'achthe bottom-'of'the bottle the straw must be forced down intothebottle either by the r'n'o'utli' or by the-'- fingers. In any and all ofthese cases theuse of-a selfcontained straw isnot at all satisfactory;

The primary object of the invention is to provide a sealed-in'sipper forbottled beveragesin which the sipper is offlno' greaterlength than thatof the-capped bottle, but uponremoving the cap the sipper automaticallyextends, its full length and the lower end remains near: the bottom ofthe bottle.

Another object isito: provide asealed-insipper for beverages containedin cappedpbottles. and which upon removing thenap, causes the sipperautomatically to extendto'alength greater than thelengthoof the bottle,Without the use ofthe fingers, and-in which the lowerpend-of thesipperremains in practical contact withthebottomof the bottle,

Still another object is to'provide a sealed-insipper for bottledbeverages which lends itself readily tovbeing-p ositioned within thebottle by ordinary capping operations;

Another objectis to provide asealed-in sipper' for bottled beverages inwhich the sipper is made of two telescoping parts and in which the partsautomatically extend to their full length when the cap of the bottleis'removed and the; full length is considerably greater thanthe'lengthof the bottle.

Anotherobjectis to provide a sipper for bottled beverages in which thesipper is formed-of'two parts which slide with respect to one anotherand adapted to extendto a length greater than that of the bottle, thetwo parts being restrained',

from becoming separatedfrom one another. I

Still another object'is to provide a sealed-in sipperfor'bottledbeverages in which thesipper is normally hermetically sealedatthe top but" is fr'acturable in order to open up the upper-end of the,sipper.

A further object is to provide a two-part telescoping sipper forbeverages in which the lower" part of the sipper is open and the upp rpart is constituted of a hermetically sealed but fracturable portioninwhich that portion is provided with anornamentalobject.

A final object is to provide asipper for beverages formed of two partswhich extend with respect to one another, the lower part being op'en' atthe bottom and the upper part being closed by ahermetically sealedinsert which can be removed either by asliding'fit action or byv afracturing operation.

Other objects and featureswvill beapparentas the specification isperused in connectionwith the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows a bottle in section with;th eupper end in elevation and:containing one; form.: of. my improved sipper; in this figure it isashsumed that the cap has been removed and the sipper has automaticallyextended to its full length;

Figure 2 shows, a bottle similar to that in; v

Figurel but withthe capaffixed; and the sippe-I! collapsed to its fullyforeshortened.- condition. ready to be automatically extendedwhenthecap- Figure 5 is an elevational view of thepuppera fragmentaryportion of the improved sipper showing the iracturable tip;

Figure 6 is a view similar to Figure 5, but with the tip of the sipperbroken ofi;

Figure '7 is a modified form of the upper end of the improved sipperemploying a plug form of closure;

Figure 8 shows a view similar to Figure 7 but with the end plug removedto expose the opening in the sipper; and

Figures 9 and 10 illustrate, in perspective, modified end portions ofthe improved sipper, depicting the manner in which these portions can bemade in any suitable ornamental style.

The improved sipper for the bottle is constituted of a long tubularmember 3 made preferably of plastic material or specially treated straw.The member 3 is preferably tapered over its entire length by a straighttaper, i. e. continuously enlarged from the upper to the lower end, and

the bore within the member may be either of the same diameter throughoutthe length of the member or can become enlarged at the same rate as theouter diameter of the member. Thus, the member may have a constant wallthickness, depending on the manner in which the member is extruded orotherwise manufactured. The lower part 4 of the sipper is constituted ofa material similar to the upper part and has a smaller external diameterat the upper end than at the lower end.

As shown on the drawings, the upper member is telescopically buthermetically fitted within the lower member, each having a portion 5surrounded by or surrounding theother portion of sufficient length, evenwhen the parts are extended, to leave a sufiiciently long sealing joint.The tapers on the parts 3, 4 are sufficiently gradual that while thereis enough clearance between the parts indicated at 6 in Figure 2 whenthe parts-are in their contracted positions to eliminate any substantialfriction, the parts are snugly fitted together to form a hermetic jointat the position 5 when the sipper is in its fully extended position. Inorder to facilitate the relative movements of the upper and lower parts3, 4 from the contracted position shown in Figure 2 to the extendedposition shown in Figure 1, the external surface of the tube 3 and theinternal surface of the tube 4 should be relatively smooth and ofsubstantially the same configuration, i. e. rectangular, elliptical, butpreferably circular.

The upper end of the tubular member 3 can be closed in any manner,although as will be pointed out herein-after, this closure must beopened when the sipper is ready for use. In case the sipper is formed ofhard straw, it may be sufiicient merely to nip the end by thefingernail. However, in case the sipper is constituted of a plastic, Ihave found it more convenient to provide in the plastic a nicked orundercut groove indicated at 1 in Fig. 5, which readily permits theuppermost tip 8 to be broken off by the fingers. It will be understoodthat the notch I is not deep enough to destroy the hermetic condition atthe upper end of the sipper. The material of the tube 3' can have aspecific gravity which is preferably less than or not a great deal morethan the specific gravity of the contained beverage so as to permit itto rise under conditions which will be explained presently.

In order to insert the sipper into a bottle filled with beverage, thecap 2 is placed over the upper end of the sipper and pressed by theusual capping machine against the lip of the bottle, at which time theupper portion of the sipper will be found to be pressed into the lowerportion as shown in Fig. 2. As pointed out hereinbefore, the part 3 fitssnugly with respect to the part 4 only when these parts are in theirfully extended position as shown in Fig. 1. The joint between theseparts can be readily broken due to the low co-efficient of friction ofthe material out of which the parts are made. Consequently, as the cap 2is brought into position over the bottle to press the part 3 downward,the joint at 5 is instantly broken and then there is sufficientclearance at B to permit these parts to be readily contracted by thefurther operation of the capping machine. Due to the fact that thespecific gravity of the material out of which the part 4 is made isgreater than the specific gravity of the beverage, the part 4 willremain in its lowermost position as shown in Fig. 2, even though thereis a clearance between the parts 3 and 4. In other words, the part 4will not float upwardly along the surface of the part 3. In order toassure this anchor position of the part 4, the latter can be made of anymaterial, plastic or otherwise. which provides the necessary weightingdown effect.

It is apparent that when the support is placed in the bottle, there is acolumn of air contained in the upper and lower portions, since theuppermost tip 8 is sealed and there is a substantially hermetic jointbetween the contacting surfaces of the sipper parts. During the cappingoperation, when the upper portion 3 is being pressed into the lowerportion, this column of air undergoes a compressing action and the airremains under compression during all of the time that the cap stays onthe bottle.

While there may be some tendency for the air contained in the lowertubular member 4 to escape upwardly through the space 6 as the part 3 isbeing pressed downward, nevertheless the larger portion of this air willfind its way into the interior of the tube 3 along with the air that wasoriginally contained in this tube, and thus be subjected to thecompressing action of the beverage as it attempts to ascend into thetube.

When the cap is removed in order to sip the contents of the bottle, theupper portion 3 of the sipper pops up immediately due to the expansionof the air column contained in the sipper. In case the material of theupper portion 3 has a specific gravity less than that of the beverage,the sipper will expand lengthwise at an even greater rate, although itis to be understood that the force which causes the portion 3 to moveupwardly is in greater degree due to the release of the pressure of theair column contained within the sipper.

The part 3 will move upwardly until its lower portion contacts with theinterior surface of the lower tube 4 as shown in Fig. l, at which timethe upper part 3 will have projected for a considerable distance out ofthe bottle as indicated in Fig. 1, but with the uppermost tip stillclosed.

After the sipper has popped up in the manner stated, it is merelynecessary to break off the upper end in order to expose the bore of thesipper. In order to facilitate a clean fracture at a predeterminedpoint, a V-shaped groove 1 may be formed in the sipper near the top sothat little or no pressure is required to fracture the element. Theportion 8 that is broken off may be provided with ornamental figures,such as a horses head 9 (Fig. 9) or a horizontal star [0 (Fig. 10), anda loop H can be employed, if desired, in any of these figures so as tostring these end pieces similar to beads, as a souvenir.

In Fig. 3, there is shown a modified form of sipper in which the-tubularpartshave substantially thesame diameter throughout their length andare-not tapered in the manner explained hereinbefore. At the lower endof thetube. B there is" provided an outwardly flared flange-l which fitssnugly but slidably within thevlower tube H. The latter is provided atits upper end with an inwardly extending neck l2 which is provided witha bore of substantially the same diameter as the external dimension ofthe tube 9. Thus, the tubes 9 and H telescope within one another as inthe case of the structure shown in Figs. 1 and 2, and the flared portionIt and the inwardly extending portion l2 have dimensions such thathermetic joints are provided at each of these two positions between theparts 9, H throughout the entire sliding movement of the parts. It isapparent that the tubular member 9 is supported at two spaced points atall times within the tubular member H, the distance between these pointsbecoming greater as the part is moved downwardly into the part ll.Furthermore, the shape of the flared-out tip I!) can conform preciselyto the internal surface of the inwardly extending lip 12 to such anextent that when the tubes are in their most extended position (afterthe cap has been removed) an additional hermetic'seal is obtainedbetween these two deformed portions.

Thus, the parts 9 and H are rigidly related to one another in both theextended and compressed positions. The modification shown in Fig. 3 hassome advantages over that illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 in that no tapersare required on the parts 9 and II and there is a tendency to havesomewhat less friction in moving one part with respect to the other,although as stated hereinbefore, these parts can be made of asubstantially frictionless plastic material. The latter can also betreated with suitable and wellknown substances which may reduce thefriction to a negligible amount.

It should be further noted that the buoying efiect of the compressedcolumn of air in the tube 9 is so strong as to cause the upper member 9to pop out of the bottle, assuming that the part II has suificientanchoring effect to remain at the bottom of the bottle. It should befurther noted that in the improved support shown in Fig. 3, the air thatis trapped in the tube H is caused to enter the tube 9 under thecompressing action as when the cap 2 is being placed in position, sothat none of this air is lost by leakage. increased.

In Fig. 4 there is shown still another modified type of sipper at theposition of the contact between the upper and lower portions. The lowerelement 12a is formed with a straight, tapered, inwardly extending neckportion l3 which corresponds in taper and length to a flared-out portionH; on the upper part E5 of the sipper. This structure has some advantageover the flange I0 shown in Fig. '3 in that a contacting surface isprovided throughout a greater length between the upper and lowerportions of the sipper, thus assuring a somewhat better hermetic seal atthis position, although as has already been stated, the seal obtainedbetween the flange ID and the neck portion [2 in Fig. 3 between thesliding and the abutting surfaces is sufficient to provide all thenecessary hermetic effect at this position.

It will be understood that the upper end of Consequently, the buoyancyis the'p'art. 9 in;.Fig., 3 and. the part] 5; in. Fig. 411sterminatedby-,rwfracturable closure 8- similar :to that describedf inaconnectionwith Figs; 5--v and 6, or of: any othersuitableztype.

Amodifiedformzof;this;terminating portion is shown inFigs; 7' and 8; A-fairly'tightlyf fitted cap or plug llirm'ay; beiinsertedinto the bore ofthesipper 3 by,meansfofian extension I1. This was described inconnection with the ornamental top portions 9 and [0.

While I have described the improved sipper from the standpoint ofnormally employing plastic materials of the proper specific gravity topermit the extensionfunction, it will be understood that other materialsmay be used for this purpose, such as specially treated straw orsynthetic rubber, since I do not depend entirely on the specific gravityof the upper portion 3 to cause the sipper to pop up, but instead, theexpansion of the air column contained within the sipper, which wouldforce this portion upwardly even if the material out of which saidportion is made does not normally have a floating effect.

It will be noted that the sipper or straw remains in a sanitarycondition throughout, since the upper portion of the bore becomesexposed only when the user breaks off the terminal piece 8 or removesthe plug 16. There is no necessity to grasp the straw by the hand exceptfor this fracturing operation because the sipper automatically extendsitself in a manner described hereinbefore.

It is apparent that in any and all of the sipper embodiments shown inFigs. 1 to 4, the upper sipper portions 3, 9, I5 can be readily removedfrom the lower portions 4, l l and In respectively and can serve as arigid stirrer for liquor. In the sipper of Figs. 1 and 2, the upperportion is simply pressed downwardly through the tube 4 to be disengagedsince the direction of the taper facilitates this operation. The othersippers can likewise be separated into their two parts so as to utilizethe upper part in each case for the purpose mentioned. Conversely, thetwo portions of each sipper can be readily and inexpensively assembledtogether to obtain the telescoping ac-v tion described hereinbefore.

I am aware that the invention may be embodied in still other specificforms without departing from the spirit or essential attributes thereof,and I therefore desire the present embodiment to be considered in allrespects as illustrative, and not restrictive; reference being had tothe appended claims rather than to the foregoing description to indicatethe scope of the invention.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desireto secure by Letters Patent, is: I I

1. A sipper for beverages and other liquids or semi-solids, said sipperbeing formed of a plurality of telescoping tubular parts hermeticallyand slidably fitted together, one of said parts be ing constituted ofmaterial having a specific gravity no greater than that of the beverageand the other of said parts being constituted of material having aspecific gravity no less than the specific gravity of the beverage.

2. A sipper for bottled beverages, open at both ends and formed of twoparts which are slidably 7 and hermetically fitted together,'one of theparts of the sipper having a specific gravity and total weight such thatit remains at the bottom of the bottle and the other of said partshaving av specific gravity and weight such that it tends to floatupwardly through the beverage and to remain popped up out of the bottle.

CHARLES F. JARBEAU.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

Number UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Dyer Aug. 8, 1911 Parlett Nov.30, 1915 Hamilton Feb.'27, 1940 Hanson Apr. 14, 1942 Humbert Jan. 8,1946

